admininto the country.
Green Route
The Green Route is a route used by travellers who are not carrying any dutiable or restricted goods. Dutiable goods refer to goods that are not covered by the traveller’s and tourist rebates.
A traveller’s rebate is an allowance granted on goods imported into Zimbabwe by a traveller. This allowance is divided into two categories, namely total rebate and partial rebate.
Total rebate is granted on all used personal effects (articles pertaining to or carried upon the body, such as clothing, toilet requisites, but excludes such articles as radios, cameras, among others).
Partial rebate, on the other hand, is an allowance granted to a traveller once a month on the date of his/her first entry into Zimbabwe in that calendar month on condition that:
l Goods are properly declared.
l Goods are not for resale or of a commercial nature.
l The value of goods does not exceed US$300,00.
l Alcoholic beverages are not more than five litres of which not more than two litres may be spirits and the traveller is 18 years and above.
l The traveller is not a crew member.
Red Route
If the goods being carried by a traveller/tourist do not qualify under the rebates stated above, then the traveller should elect the Red Route. This route is used by travellers who are carrying dutiable or restricted goods.
In this route, the traveller completes the declaration form (Form Number 47) and duty payable will be assessed by a Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) officer. A traveller who is unsure of which route to follow should also use the Red Route.
Restricted goods
Usually restricted goods in this context are those which are subject to import or export control – that is, goods which may not be imported or exported except under licence or permit. Examples include the following:
l Wildlife and wildlife products.
l Agricultural produce.
l Plants and plant products, soil medium, invertebrates.
l Firearms and ammunition.
l Relics and national monuments.
l Local currency.
l Foreign currency.
l Stills and all apparatus or parts of apparatus capable of being used for the production or refining of alcohol.
Prohibited goods
These are goods whose importation or exportation is absolutely banned. Travellers should therefore not import or export such products which include the following:
l Pornographic materials.
l Flick knives/lock blades.
l Skin lightening creams containing hydroquinone and mercury.
l Base, counterfeit or forged coins or currency.
l Prison-made and penitentiary-made goods.
l Spirituous beverages which contain preparations, extracts, essences or chemical products which are noxious or injurious.
l Any goods which are indecent, obscene or objectionable.
l Any goods which might tend to deprave the morals of the inhabitants, or any class of the inhabitants, of Zimbabwe.
l Any goods the importation of which is prohibited by or under the authority of any enactment.
For more details, kindly contact your nearest Zimra Office or our Legal and Corporate Services Division.
Their contact details are as given below:
l Zimbabwe Revenue Authority
Legal and Corporate Services Division
6th Floor ZB Centre
Corner First Street/Kwame Nkrumah Avenue
PO Box 4360, Harare
Tel: 04 – 790811-4
Fax: 04 – 774087
E-mail: [email protected]
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Bongani Ndlovu